Oakland Trolley Tour: 2022

Posted on | by Amanda Near

 

This year, TMC Financing reestablished one of our favorite annual events – The Trolley Tour.

Our employees hopped on a historical trolley to visit local clients who utilized the SBA 504 loan program.

We visited two Oakland businesses First Person Inc., and Bloc15 event venue. Our team was thrilled to learn about how the SBA 504 program allowed these clients to purchase commercial real estate and accelerate their business growth.

First Person, Inc

Our first stop was First Person, Inc. a digital marketing & production company for the B2B enterprise. They specialize in large-scale brand development and product launch campaigns. They pride themselves on being a creative agency that utilizes design and technology to help companies connect to their customer base.  

First Person outgrew their facility in San Francisco and found it necessary to expand to a second location. Their SBA 504 loan financed the acquisition of a 5,258 square-foot building in Oakland in 2019. 

Project Highlights:

  • Located at 2357 San Pablo Ave, Oakland, CA
  • The 504 loan provided funds to purchase a 5,258 sf office space
  • Made the purchase with only a 10% down payment
  • First Person was able to purchase more space than they needed, allowing the opportunity to rent out unused space and allow room to expand

Bloc15

On our second stop we visited Bloc15, is a premier event venue and co-working space built for today’s social landscape.  The 10,000 SF facility has a mezzanine level, two production rooms and a fully equipped catering kitchen to provide meeting solutions for all customer needs.  

Their SBA 504 loan proceeds facilitated the purchase of a 15,000 square-foot property in Oakland’s Jack London district. Bloc15 also used some of the proceeds to finance extensive facility improvements, all with only 15% down.  

Project Highlights:

  • Space is located 252 2nd St, Oakland, CA
  • The 504 loan provided the funds to purchase and renovate a 15,000 square foot warehouse
  • Renovation costs were $3 million and financed as a part of the total project cost
  • The loan proceeds were used to construct amenities within the event venue to grow their client base
  • Bloc15 was able to purchase more space than they needed, allowing the opportunity to rent out unused space